Nursing Education Concept By Mary Jane Smith Who is Mary Jane Smith?
Mary Jane Smith, a distinguished figure in the field of nursing education, has had a profound impact on the profession through her innovative teaching practices and dedication to nursing science. Over a career spanning three decades, she has taught master’s and doctoral students in core nursing science courses, providing a framework for understanding the evolution of nursing as an academic discipline. Her story reflects a personal journey of growth and transformation in the field of nursing education, highlighting significant moments that have shaped her approach to teaching.
Smith’s story of teaching emphasizes the importance of reflecting on one’s personal journey to understand the critical turning points that have influenced her professional development. She views teaching as a dynamic process, constantly evolving based on experiences, insights, and shifts in perspective. By sharing her story, she offers a valuable perspective on how teachers can remain open to change, adapt to new challenges, and continue to develop their teaching practices.
Smith believes that storytelling is a natural human process that helps create meaning by connecting significant events and linking the past, present, and future. In her own teaching journey, she identifies four critical shifts that have defined her approach to education: wanting to teach yet not being sure, moving along by taking it on, letting go and trusting the process, and still figuring it out and creating new. These shifts serve as the structure for her story, highlighting key moments that have shaped her development as an educator.
Willing to Teach Yet Not Being Sure
In the early years of her teaching career, Smith experienced a phase characterized by both a willingness to teach and uncertainty about her capabilities. This period included several “story-moments,” such as letting others take the lead, noticing a “beam of light,” and deciding to take charge of her teaching responsibilities. When she began teaching a graduate nursing science course with her newly earned PhD, she felt a strong desire to convey knowledge to her students. However, she also experienced a sense of doubt and hesitation about her ability to do so effectively.
Initially, Smith relied on others to do the teaching, a safe and familiar approach grounded in the way she had been taught during her own master’s program. At that time, nursing courses often consisted of guest lectures and student presentations, with the teacher primarily coordinating the logistics and occasionally providing clarification. This approach allowed Smith to remain on the sidelines, observing rather than actively engaging in the teaching process.
However, Smith soon realized that her formative experiences as a learner were significantly influencing her teaching practices. She began to feel that something was missing from this method of teaching, sensing that it lacked the depth and engagement necessary to foster true learning. During her first year or two of teaching, she experienced a pivotal moment while walking through the university hallways. As she passed an open classroom door, she heard a faculty member lecturing with conviction, clearly passionate about the topic being discussed. This moment was an awakening for Smith, prompting her to reflect on her own teaching practices.
She decided then and there that “a teacher should teach.” This realization marked a turning point in her career, as she resolved to take responsibility for the courses she was teaching and to engage more actively in the learning process. She began to think of each course as a series of lessons aimed at meeting specific objectives. She meticulously prepared her lessons, writing them out in detail on 5×8 cards, and then presented them to her students. The students appeared attentive, taking notes as she lectured, and she felt a sense of accomplishment in moving from the periphery to the center of the teaching process.
This phase represented a significant shift for Smith, as she moved from a passive role to an active one, embracing her responsibility as an educator and striving to convey knowledge with conviction.
Moving Along by Taking It On
In this phase of her teaching journey, Smith began to “move along by taking it on.” She experienced several key story-moments during this period, such as grasping the lesson of the lesson and gaining new insights through critical dialogue. The lesson of the lesson became apparent to Smith when she read her students’ papers and realized that many of them had not fully understood the concepts she had taught. Their writing lacked the depth, breadth, and creativity she had hoped to see, and she was disappointed by the gap between what she thought she had taught and what the students had actually learned.
Smith recognized that she had been teaching “innocently,” assuming that the meanings and significance she placed on her actions were the same ones that her students would take from them (Brookfield, 1995). Although she had a clear grasp of the material and had presented it logically, her students were not internalizing the lessons as she had intended. This realization prompted her to seek solutions, and she began discussing the issue with colleagues. One colleague shared a cartoon titled “How to Teach a Cow a Damned Good Lesson,” which depicted a cow being hit by a two-by-four with the caption, “First you have to get her attention.” This humorous illustration resonated with Smith, as she recognized the need to capture her students’ attention and engage them more deeply in the learning process.
Through conversations with her students, Smith discovered that they were struggling to create meaning from the course content and were genuinely trying to understand the material. She realized that there was a strong desire to learn, and that fostering this desire through dialogue could enhance the learning experience. This realization marked another shift in her teaching approach, as she began to see the value of open communication and critical dialogue in the classroom.
Smith attended a seminar by Richard Paul, who emphasized that critical thinking requires critical questioning. Paul argued that while critical thinking is often expected, it must be actively developed, and teachers have a responsibility to engage students in the process of thinking critically. This seminar inspired Smith to shift her focus from simply delivering lessons to encouraging critical thought. She began to think of each lesson as a series of questions designed to guide students through the material, encouraging them to explore different viewpoints, perspectives, and reasoning.
Smith incorporated Socratic questioning into her teaching, using questions to clarify concepts, probe deeper, and guide students in their critical thinking. She included these questions in her course syllabus and encouraged students to come to class prepared to discuss them with their peers and with her. This approach required significant preparation and sensitivity, as Smith learned to balance pushing students to think critically with giving them space to explore their ideas.
Over time, Smith found that her students were more engaged and more likely to grasp the lesson when they were actively involved in critical dialogue. A typical student response to her questioning process was, “Although I can’t say I like being called on (even though it is getting better), the questions make me think a little harder about the subject matter. Knowing I might need to discuss a question in class, I prepare differently.” This feedback confirmed for Smith that her approach was helping students think more deeply and engage more fully with the material.
Letting Go and Trusting the Process
As Smith continued to refine her teaching practices, she entered a phase characterized by “letting go and trusting the process.” This phase involved key story-moments, such as engaging in mutual inquiry and recognizing the unfinished nature of the lesson. During this time, she challenged herself to be fully present with her students, striving to understand their perspectives and helping them to expand their understanding.
David Kolb’s (1984) theory of experiential learning suggests that individuals form abstract concepts and generalizations by reflecting on their experiences. Smith saw this as an opportunity to change the way her students understood and applied nursing concepts, encouraging them to integrate new knowledge with their existing understanding. She began requiring students to respond to critical incident questions, such as:
- Describe the time that you were most engaged in class today.
- Describe the time that you were most distanced in class today.
- Describe the action that anyone took that was most helpful to you in class today.
- Describe the action that anyone took that was most confusing to you today.
- What about class surprised you the most today?
Students were asked to reflect on these questions and provide detailed responses, which they emailed to her a few days after each class. Smith reviewed these reflections, looking for common themes, and discussed them with the class at the beginning of the next session. This practice allowed students to hear each other’s reflections, promoting a sense of shared learning and mutual inquiry.
The reflections demonstrated that this process helped students integrate course concepts and internalize critical thinking skills. For example, one student wrote, “At first, I didn’t recognize the teaching for what it was. I had to think and stay focused during class. Preparation is key. No easy answers were given to me; I was guided and encouraged to think through the process.” Another student noted, “The reflections were really helpful in my ability to process what I had learned in class. This course was challenging, and the reflections helped me make sense of the concepts.”
Through these reflections, Smith recognized the value of mutual inquiry in promoting deep understanding and knowledge. She learned to trust the process of critical reflection, allowing students to explore their thoughts and experiences in a supportive environment.
Still Figuring It Out and Creating New
In the current phase of her teaching career, Smith continues to “figure it out and create new.” Despite her many years of experience, she still approaches each teaching session with a sense of anticipation and excitement. She constantly seeks to improve the structure, clarity, and integration of her lessons, recognizing that there is always room for growth and innovation.
Smith’s approach to teaching involves thinking critically about how to engage students in exploring various dimensions of a concept. She encourages them to question assumptions, consider different perspectives, and challenge their own understanding. She makes it clear to her students that she expects them to come to class prepared to discuss, question, and be questioned.
Smith believes that questioning should be done in a nonthreatening manner, with the goal of exploration and discussion rather than right or wrong answers. This process of discovery helps students integrate concepts and principles, deepening their understanding and allowing them to apply what they have learned to their nursing practice.
Smith has also become more aware of her presence with her students, recognizing that effective teaching goes beyond instruction and questioning. She strives to create a “dance of content and resonance,” where ideas and insights flow freely, sparking genuine learning for both the teacher and the students (Bache, 2000). While this “dance” does not happen in every session, when it does, it creates an environment of intellectual exchange and mutual discovery.
Another aspect of Smith’s current approach to teaching is her commitment to what she calls an “other-regarding approach.” This method involves being genuinely present with her students, seeking to understand their perspectives and staying with them as they navigate the learning process. She believes that this approach allows her to remain true to herself while finding her own voice as a teacher.
Summary
Mary Jane Smith’s story of teaching nursing science to graduate students is a testament to the power of reflection, openness to change, and commitment to professional growth. Her journey illustrates the importance of being present with students, engaging them in critical dialogue, and trusting the teaching process. By sharing her experiences, Smith hopes to inspire other educators to reflect on their own teaching journeys, to embrace change, and to continue developing their teaching practices.
Smith’s story is not just about the content of teaching but about the process of teaching itself. It is about being fully present with students, enabling them to think critically, and fostering an environment of mutual inquiry and exploration. Through storytelling, she has been able to integrate the insights she has gained throughout her career into her current teaching practices, continually seeking new ways to connect with her students and inspire their learning.
As Smith reflects on her journey, she acknowledges that there is always more to learn and new challenges to face. She encourages other educators to embrace their own stories, trusting that their experiences deserve to be told. As Nouwen (1997) suggests, “We have to trust that our stories deserve to be told. We may discover that the better we tell our stories, the better we will want to live them.” By sharing their stories, teachers can find new ways to engage with their students, enhance their teaching practices, and make a difference in the lives of those they teach.
In conclusion, Mary Jane Smith’s narrative underscores the value of storytelling as a tool for professional development in nursing education. By reflecting on her experiences, Smith has been able to refine her teaching approach, create meaningful connections with her students, and continue to grow as an educator. Her story is an invitation to other teachers to explore their own paths, to embrace the challenges and opportunities that come with teaching, and to continually seek new ways to inspire and engage their students.